Explosive shell



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APPLICATION FILED JAN. I0 I917. 1,351,07w

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EXPLOSIVE SHELL.

APPLICATION FILED IAN. IO, I9I7.

1 35 1 ,078. Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

f UNITED STATES.

PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM L. WALKER, OF NEW.YORK, N. Y.

EXPLOSIVE SHELL.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM L. WALKER, a citizen of the United States, and resident of New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Explosive Shells, of which the following is a specificareaction an explosive, inflammable or ex-.

plosively decomposable substance. In practice those ingredients of the shell contents which are roducible only at works specially equipped or such purposes will be placed within the shell, the introduction of other reactive ingredients which may be obtained or supplied conveniently anywhere being postponed until immediately before the shell is required for explosive use. By this means, thus generally expressed, potentially explosive shells can be charged with part of the necessary materials, which in the absence of the other ingredients are entirely inert and harmless; such shells can be transported and stored with no more precaution than would be taken in the case of ordinary merchandise; supplies or depots of such shells will not be susceptible to injurious attack and can therefore be maintained nearer to the seat of action in war than is considered expedientunder present conditions. Moreover, magazines of such shells'will constitute no more'a menace to the safety of transports or warships than the storage and carriage of ordinary merchandise.

The evolution of heat and of gas is an essential accompaniment of an explosion. All explosives now used so far as I am aware are compounds or mixtures which in themselves .are capable of nearly instantaneous reaction or decomposition with the production of great heat and large volumes of gas upon the application of an igniting or det- Specification of Letters Patent.

onating impulse which must be more or less emphatic according to the nature of the exploslve; but all such explosives, since it is Patented Aug. 31, 1920. Application filed January 10, 1917 Serial No. 141,691.

their prime function to explode, are liable to explode inadvertently, and though the tendency is to employ explosives as insensit1ve as is consistent with the necessary power, no such explosive can properly be regarded as safe; safety as applied to this situation being a merely relative-term. By my invention an explosive shell is provided initially with only a part of the ingredients necessary to produce explosive conditions until the time arrives for the shell to be used, when the remaining essential ingredient substances are introduced and therefore in this condition of partial readiness, the shell is perfectly safe. Moreover, in shells which embody my invention the reactive substances are placed in separate and incommunicate compartments and the shell is provided with devices for establishing communication between these compartments. These devices are of such character that they are not operative until the actual moment for-use of the shell as an explosive shall have arrived.

Materials which may be used in the construction of a shell according to my invention are exemplified by a carbid, such as calcium carbid, water and oxygen. The oxygen may be supplied in whole or in part by the introduction of air under pressure into a suitable compartment in the shell, or by a substance, such as sodium peroxid, which may be mixed with the calcium carbid and- -which when brought into contact with water shell will further be provided with suitable chambers or compartments normally incommunicate with the carbid compartment, these compartments or reservoirs being adapted to receive and contain water and compressed oxygen or air. The latter reactive ingredients Will-not be introduced until there is occasion for the use of the.

shell as an explosive. Apparatus for the introduction-of such ingredients can be portable, and the supply of the ingredients obtained anywhere. The shell will also be provided with automatic means which when the shell is used, as by being fired from a gun, establish communication between the water compartment and the carbid compartment and also liberate the compressed oxygen or air, so that under the impulse of the expansive oxygen or air the water is injected into the carbid chamber there to form acetylene gas, which under the pressure generated and in admixture with the oxygen contained in the shell becomes a highly explosive mixture. If required, additional quantities of oxygen may be supplied if the carbid charge was originally mixed with an oxygen yielding ingredient such as sodium peroxid; Upon the operation of an igniting fuse or detonator of the usual character the explosive charge produced in the shell will be exploded. I

In the drawings hereto annexed which illustrate my invention, (in which, however, no attempt is made to show exactly the relative spaces which should be occupied by the several ingredients of the charge) Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of a shrapnel shell;

Fig. 2 is a cross section of Fig. 1, taken on the line 2 2;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of an armor piercing shell; and

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section of an aerial bomb.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, the shell A contains an interior chamber B into which granular gas-producing material B is charged. This material may be represented by calcium carbid or a mixture of calcium carbid and sodium peroxid, and will hereafter be referred to for the sake of brevity simply as carbid. In order to facilitate the distribution of the reagent which is eventually to produce an inflammable or decomposable gas, the chamber B is provided with an internal perforated or reticulated tubular core C. Around the outside of the chamber B shrapnel S is placed. The usual time or percussive fuse or detonator will be located at F. The rear portion of the shell A is provided with two compartments W and O, the former adapted to the reception of the reagent, water, which by contact with the carbid produces acetylene gas. The wall W of the water receptacle is made of thin and easily puncturable material, and tubular chambers V are provided toaccommodate the puncturing rods R, which are normally held in restraint by the pivoted catches I which are located in the air cham ber O. A tube T is inserted through the base a of the shell and through this tube water may be introduced into the chamber V at the proper time. The air chamber 0 is provided with a charging tube 5 through which air or oxygen may be introduced into chamber 0 under pressure. In the wall of the chamber 0 adjacent to the water chamber IV there are provided small apertures 0 through which the piercing heads P of the puncturing rods D may pass in order to puncture the relativel thin wall of the water chamber at W The puncturing rods D are normally held in restraint by catches G, these being held in position by springs G. WVhen the shell charged with carbid but having no water in its water chamber is required for use, the water chamber IV is first filled by introducing water into the tube T, this opening being closed by means of plug T. Then air or oxygen under pressure is introduced through the tube 1) which is automatically closed by a valve 6 after the manner of an inflatable vehicle tire. The plug V completes the closure of the air or oxygen in the tube. The puncturing rods R and D are provided with springs U and E, these springs bein held under restraint by the catches I and The catches Gr are connected with bell crank levers H by chains G these bell cranks and the catches K being pivoted in the brackets O.

1 In the air or oxygen chamber 0 there is a spindle K on which the sleeve L is mounted both to rotate and to slide and the sleeve L is held normally against the head of the stem K by means of a spring N. Double collars L, L engage arms of the bell cranks H and catches I, so that when the sleeve L is drawn away from the head of the stem K the catches I will release the puncturing rods R. and the bell cranks H through chain connections G will draw the catches G from engagement with the puncturing rods D. The release of these puncturing rods is effected by the operation of the ball governor device marked M, which when the shell is rotated by the rifling of the gun from which it is fired draws the sleeve L along the stem K and releases the puncturing rods so that their respective springs drive them against the thin walls of the water chamber IV causing the puncturing heads R and P to puncture the thin metal walls opposed to them. The puncturing heads, as is better illustrated in Fig. 2, are longitudinally concaved or channeled, so that they do not stop or plug the holes which they make by perforation of the walls of the chamber IV. The establishment of communication between the water and air chambers and the carbid chambers causes the water to be injected into the carbid chamber together with the oxygen or air which has been. under compression in the air chamber 0, and the reaction of the water -upon the carbid or upon the carbid and peroxid, if both are in the chamber B, produces a gas which upon detonation or igni-'- tion as by the fuse F, causes the shell to ex plode.

Detailed description of Fig. 3 is hardly necessary in view of the description of Figs. 1 and 2. The chief difference between the shell shown in Fig. 3 and that shown in Figs. 1 and 2 lies in the provision of a single chamber Q. for the reception both of water and. compressed air or oxygen which are introduced through the tubular passages T or *0 in the base a. of the shell, these passages being closed by plugs t, v.

The rotative impulse for providing centrifugal means to release the reagent in the shell may be provided otherwise than by the rotation of the shell itself. In Fig. 4:, which illustrates the application of my invention to an aerial bomb, 1, 2 are two sections of the shell, adapted to be screwed together. 3 are guiding vanes, which may be cast as webs integral with section 2. 4 is a bail or handle, adapted to serve as the suspension means for the shell when it is in readiness to be released and fall. 5 is a can or like receptacle, in part composed of pervious material 6, such as wire cloth. The

carbid or carbid and peroxid, 7, is contained in the receptacle 5. The detonator (not shown) will be secured in the aperture 8, in such manner as to close the shell gas tight. 9 represents the water reservoir, which is similar to the reservoir W of F ig. 1; and 10 designates comprehensively the centrifugal means for releasing the puncturing rods 13;. this is essentially the same as the apparatus described in connection with Fig.1. The shaft of the said centrifugal releasing mechanism is designated by the member 11, and extends to the outside of the shell. where it carries a windmill 12. Suitable packing is provided at 14.

When this aerial bomb is prepared for service, the shell members 1 and 2 are separated, the water reservoir 9 filled through the capped aperture 15, which is then closed, and the sections 1 and 2 again joined. On

dropping the aerial bomb above described,

its descent through the air causes the windmill 12 to rotate .with increasing velocity; the centrifugal releasing devices 10 release the puncturing rods 13, and the water contained in the reservoir escapes into contact with the material 7. The vanes 3 prevent or retard rotary movement of the shell itself as well as guide it straight in its descent. This last described devlce exemplifies specifically the general idea of providing amotive member external tothe shell to impart movement to the centrifugal releasing means within.

Not only are the combustible properties of a mixture of acetylene and oxygen available to produce explosive effects in a shell constructed according to the principles above explained, but we have also available the susceptibility of acety,lene to decompose explosively when detonated under high pressures. If acetylene is compressed to more than thirty pounds to the square inch de composition will travel through the mass so rapidly as to become in reality a detonation. As the pressures rise the detonative efi'ect becomes more pronounced. It is recorded that by detonation of acetylene under pressure, pressures up to 198,000 pounds per square inch, have been obtained. The explosive character of the mixture in a shell constructed as above described may further be accentuated by mixing with a carbid a suitable quantity of metallic salt, such as a copper salt, which combines readily with acetylene to form a highly explosive acetylid. In addition to the advantages above mentioned, a carbid shell possesses the recommendation of relative inexpensiveness.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a shell, a supply of material susceptible of generating-explosive gas when exposed to a reagent, and a reservoir adapted to receive and contain a supply of said reagent, said reservoir being separated from the gas-generative material by a solid wall, and means to puncture said wall, to admit the reagent to contact with said material.

2. In a shell, a supply of material susceptible of generating explosive gas when exposed to a reagent, and a reservoir containing a supply of said reagent and a supply of oxygen, said reservoir normally incommunicate with the gas-generative material, and means to open communication between said reservoir and said material, to admit the reagent to contact with said material.

cation between saidreservoir and said materials to admit the reagent to contact with said materials. 1

4. In a shell, a supply of material susceptible of generating explosive gas, when ex- I posed to a reagent, a supply of material susceptible of generating oxygen when exposed -to the said reagent, a reservoir containing a supply of said reagent and a supply of oxygen, said reservoir normally incommunicate with the gas-generative materials, and means to open communication'between said reservoir and said materials to admit the reagent to contact with said materials.

5...In a shell, a supply of material susceptible of generating explosive gas when exposed to. a reagent, a reservoir and a supply of said reagent therein, said reservoir being separated from the gas -generative material by a solid wall, and means to puncture said wall, to admit the reagent to conexposed to a reagent, a supply of material v susceptible of generating oxygen when ex posed to the said reagent, a reservoir and a supply of said reagent therein, said reservoir being separated from the gas-genera tive material by a wall, and a spring pressed plunger arranged automatically to puncture said wall to admit said reagent to contact with said material.

8. In a shell, a supply of material susceptible of generating explosive gas when exposed to a reagent, a supply of material susceptible of generating oxygen when exposed to the said reagent, a reservoir and a supply of said reagent and a supply of oxygen under pressure therein, said reservoir normally incommunicate with the gasgenerative material, and'means to open communication between said reservoir and said material to admit said reagent to contact with said material.

9. In a shell, a supply of material susceptible of generating explosive gas when exposed to a reagent, and a reservoir adapted to receive and contain a supply of said reagent, said reservoir normally incommuni cate with the gas-generative material, and means to puncture the wall of said reservoir to admit said reagent to contact with said material.

10. In a shell, a supply of maten'al susceptible of generating explosive gas when exposed to a reagent, and a reservoir adapted to receive and contain a supply of said reagent and a supply of oxygen, said reservoir normally incommunicate with the gasgenerative material, and means to puncture the wall of said reservoir to admit said reagent to contact with said material.

11. In a shell, a supply of material susceptible of generating explosive gas when exposed to a reagent, and a reservoir adapted to receive and contain a supply of said reagent, said reservoir normally incommunicate with the gas-generative material, and

a reciprocatory plunger to puncture the wall of said reservoir to admit said reagent to contact with said material.

12. In a shell, a supply of materialsusceptible of generating explosive gas when exposed to a reagent, and a reservoir adapted to receive and contain a supply of said reagent and a supply of oxygen, said reservoir normally incommunicate with the gasgenerative material, and a plunger arranged automatically to puncture the wall of said reservoir to admit said reagent to contact with said material.

13. In a shell, a supply of material susceptible of generating explosive gas when exposed to a reagent, and a reservoir adapted to receive and contain a'supply of said reagent, said reservoir normally incommunicate with the gas-generative material, and means comprising longitudinally channeled puncturing heads to puncture the wall of said reservoir to admit said reagent to contact with said material.

14. In a shell, a supply of material susceptible of generating explosive gas when exposed to a reagent, and a reservoir adapted to receive and contain a supply of said reagent and a supply of oxygen, said reservoir normally incommunicate with the gas-generative material, and means comprising longitudinally channeled puncturing heads'to puncture the wall of said reservoir to admit said reagent to contact with said material. v

15. In a shell, a supply of materialsusceptible of generating explosive gas when exposed to a reagent, and a reservoir adapted to receive and contain a supply of said reagent, said reservoir normally incommunicate with the gas-generating material, and centrifu'gally controlled means comprising longitudinall channeled puncturing heads to puncture t e-wall of said reservoir 'to admiti said reagent to contact with said materia 16. In a shell, a supply of material sus-- ceptible of generating explosive gas when exposed to a reagent, and a reservoir adapted to receive and contain a supply of said reagent and a supply of oxygen, said reservoir normally incommunicate with the gas generative material, and centrifugally controlled means comprising longitudinally channeled puncturing heads to puncture the wall of said reservoir to admit said reagent to contact with said material.

Signed b%me at New York, N. Y., this 22d day of ecember, 1916.

WILLIAM L. WALKER. 

